Spring flooding ‘stable’ in Montreal; dikes being dismantled
Posted May 17, 2023 11:45 am.
Last Updated May 17, 2023 11:46 am.
Spring flooding around Montreal is now stable, officials say, after a month of uncertainty and preparations.
City officials say water levels are decreasing and a positive forecast is leading them to move to “restoration mode.”
They say water flow at Carillon dam is below minor flooding threshold while the flow of the Rivière des Prairies is below the land impact threshold.
Municipalities affected by spring flooding have begun dismantling dikes erected to protect properties and infrastructure. Roads and parks will reopen in the coming days, with residents urged to check the city’s website for more information.
Some Montreal boroughs were placed on flooding alert on April 16 due to spring thawing and heavy rains. The neighbourhoods bordering Rivière-des-Prairies, Lake of Two Mountains and Lac St-Louis were at highest risk.
Municipalities built dikes, distributed sandbags, and installed inflatable plugs and pumps in those flood-risk areas.
WATCH: Montreal’s Pierrefonds residents brace for possible flooding
“The public security department remains mobilized and is supporting boroughs and related municipalities that are affected by spring flooding,” said Richard Liebmann, civil security coordinator for the Montreal agglomeration, in a statement.
Spring flooding was fatal this month in Quebec. Two volunteer firefighters were killed after being swept away by the rushing waters in St-Urbain, Que., in early May.
